Monday, August 30, 2010

B I G B E N

Hi, Guys!,

Why is the London Clock Tower called BIG BEN? Although it is popularly believed that Big Ben is the name of the four faced clock which rises above the Houses of Parliament, this is not true. Big Ben is the name of the BELL which strikes every quarter of an hour.

However, it is also believed that Big Ben nickname comes from a small man who oversaw the installation of the Great Bell. the clock and whose name was Sir Benjamin Hall. So, from that moment onwards, the Clock Tower was called Big Ben.

This international British symbol rises above the Houses of Parliament. This clock tower was built at Westminster in 1288. In 1367, the first tower was replaced, and this became the first public shimming clock in England.

In 1834, the 16th October, there was a fire, a new present clock, Big Ben, was raise in a neo-gothic style.In 1840, the architect Charles Barry, started the construction of the new Palace of Westminster.

Its height: 96.3 metres and the bottom: 61 metres.

The Clock Tower is a focus of New Year celebrations in the United Kingdom. Last year, Big Ben celebrated its 150th anniversary.

If you want to go on reading about the history of the BIG BEN, you can watch the following videos.






Houses of Parliament and The Big Ben
Cargado por GiftTours. - Divertidos y exóticos vídeos de viaje.

If you are more interested or you'd like to visit this inside, please, click on: http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/visiting-and-tours/bigben/

2 comments:

  1. Hi again,Valme! I'm Manu.
    I've opened a new blog(http://www.lesailesdicaro.blogspot.com/),I'll write only about my (novel?,),I want to tell you this because I am going to close my old blog and it wanted to continue in contact with you.I think that I could study some english in your blog,so you know that I preffer french (probably I'll travel by erasmus there to Lyon or Paris*-*),but I think that I must preserve the level that I have, though only it is of 2 º.I hope you have had a good summer!
    Bye! :D

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  2. Congratulations!!!! I'm going to read all your posts! Good luck and have a good time at University!!!! ( I love Amelie )

    When you can, why don't you come to school and talk to us?

    My best wishes, I'm pleased to know about U!!! ;-)

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